Dredging can



s. H. LINDGREN DREDGING CAN Filed May 1, 1924 Patented Nov. 26, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE STANLEY H. LINIDGREN, OF MAYWOOID, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN CAN COM- PANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY DREDGING CAN Application filed May 1, 1924. Serial No. 710,235.

My invention relates to dredging cans and particularly to a sifter top of the self-closing type, the novelty residing in an adaptation of the spring closing principle and in the ar- 3" rangement and form of the parts.

An important object of the invention is the provision of a self-closing sifter top of efficient action and so constructed that the sliding member will not stick when operated, or

be easily broken or out of order.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a sifter top consisting of inexpensive, easily formed parts which will permit production of the containers at low cost.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent as it is better understood from the following description, which, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, discloses a preferred em- 7 bodiment thereof.

Referring to the drawings,

7 Figure 1 is a perspective View of a dredge top can in which my invention is embodied;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view, partially broken away for better illustration;

Fig. 3 is a partial vertical section;

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the slide; and

Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the upper perforated cover member.

The container body 11, as shown, is of cylindrical form and is made of fiber with a bottom end 12 permanently secured thereto and a sifter top which forms the subject of my invention and will now be described in detail. 7

Said top comprises an inner metal member 13 disposed within the mouth of the container body, and having a flange 14 crimped upon the upper edge of said body, the material of said member, inwardly from said fl ange, being disposed to provide ayertical annular wall 15. A central opening 16 is provided in said top member 13, the material about said opening being formed in an annular shoulder, or head 17. Said shoulder or bead 17 is of substantially the height of the peripheral wall 15 and provides a guide for the closing slide, as will hereinafter appear. 50 A perforated top member 18 is secured over the member 13, having a depending flange 19 I crimped upon the flange 14 of said member 13.

A slide 21 is provided between the top members 13 and 18 and is formed with longitudinal shoulders 22 and a transverse shoulder 23 adapted to contact with the shoulder or bead 17 to guide said slide in its movement and to hold it in desired relation. The material adjacent the shoulders 22 and 23 is extended outwardly so that the body of the slide is of general circular configuration, being, however, cut away toward the front, as indicated at 24, to permit the necessary movement of said slide and to provide the forward extension, or lip 25 which is turned downwardly at the front at 26 (see Fig. 3) to form a thumb-piece for operation of the slide.

An important advantage of the construction just described, from a factory standpoint, is the ease of assembly. The slide 21 may be positioned upon the extended neck 17 with the tongue 25 extending in any direction and without taking time to align the parts in any particular manner. The over-top 18 may then be applied by the operator with his other hand, the complete assembling operation requiring much less time than with other types of self-closing dredge cans of which I am aware.

A wire spring 27 is carried at the rear of the slide 21, being secured in place by means of a lip 28 curled about said wire and formed by slitting the material at the rear edge of the slide, as indicated at 29 and 31. Said spring 27 has its ends open at an angle 32 to provide forward extensions 33 adapted to be disposed within and adjacent the annular wall 15 of the top member 13. Said spring serves to hold said slide normally in forward, or closing position with the perforations 34' thereof out of alignment with perforations 35 in the upper top member 18. The flange 19 of said top member 18 is cut away, as shown at 36 in Fig. 5, and the thumb-piece 25 of the slide 21 extends through the opening thus provided into position to be engaged by the thumb of the hand in which the container is held. When pressure is exerted upon said thumb-piece, the slide will move inwardly, tensioning the spring 27 against the wall 15 until the perforations 34 in said slide are brought into registration with the perforations in the top member 18. Upon release of the thumb-piece, it will be evidentthat the slide will be automatically projected outwardly and the perforations 35 thereby closed.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it Will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the form here'inbeforedescribed being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim: 7 r

1. A sifter top for containers, comprising spaced apart top members, the outer one of which is provided with sifter openings, a perforated slide interposed between said members and engaging and guided by the sides of one of said top members, and a wire spring carried by said slide at the rear end thereof and having its ends bent forwardly to provide an elbow adapted to contact with the peripheral edge of one of said top members when the slide is pushed inwardly, said spring being adapted to hold said slide normally in projected position with the perforations therein out of registration with the perforations in said top member and permitting retraction of the slide under pressure to bring said perforations into registration.

2. Asifter top for containers, comprising spaced apart top members, the outer one of which is provided with sifter openings, a perforated slide interposed between said members, and a transverse wire spring slidably carried in a gui'dew'ay formed in the rear end of said slide and having its ends bent forwardly to provide a n e'lbow adapted to contact with th'eperipheral edge of one of said top members when the slide is pushed inwardly, said spring being adapted to hold saidslide normally in projected position with the perforations therein out of registration with the perforations in said top member and-permitting retraction of the slide under pressure to bring said perforations into registration. 1

3. A sifter top for :ccntainers, comprising an inner cap member secured to the upper edge "of the container body and having an outlet opening and an upstanding shoulder surrounding said opening, a second cap member disposed above said rfirst-mentioned member and having sifter openings therein, a perforated slide formed with depending wall parts adapted toengage said upstanding shoulderas a guide, sai'dslide having a portion the'reof projecting from said cap members and forming a thumb-piece, and spring means normally holding said slide in projected or closing position.

4:. A sifter top for containers, comprising an. inner cap member secured to the upper redge of the container body and having an outlet opening and an upstanding shoulder surrounding said opening, a second cap member disposed above said first-mentioned member and having sifter openings therein, a perforated slide formed with depending wall parts adapted to engage said upstanding shoulder as a guide, said slide having a portion thereof projecting from said cap members and forming a thumb-piece, and a Wire spring connected centrally with the rear end of said slide and having forwardly bent portions forming elbows adapted to engage the peripheral edge of one "of said wall members and to be compressed thereagainst when said 5585 slide is moved inwardly.

'5. A sifter topfor containers, comprising an inner cap member secured to the upper edge of the container body and having an outlet opening and an upstanding shoulder surrounding said opening, a second cap member disposed above said first-mentioned member and having sifter openings therein, and a perforated. slide normally spring held in position-closing said openings and being yieldable under pressure of the thumb, said slide being guided by thesides of said shoulder in its movement between said upstanding shoulder and said second top member.

6. A sifter top for containers, comprising an inner cap member secured to the upper edge of the containerbody and-having an outlet opening and an upstanding shoulder surrounding said opening, a second cap member disposed above said first mentioned member and having sifter'openings therein, and a slide interposed between said cap members and engaging the sides of said upstanding shoulder and adapted to be accurately located with respect thereto by said shoulder, said slide having perforations normally out of registration with the perforations in said second cap member'randbe'ing yieldable under pressure to bring said perforations into registration.

-7.' A sifter top can, comprising a body wall, an under cap member havinga shoulderfitting within the body wall, and crimped over to embrace the top edge of said body wall, said under cap member being raised at its 2-120 center and in said raised portion having a centralopening, an outer "cap member disposed above said under cap member,.having its edgecurled about "the curl of the under cap member-and the body wall and providing within said curl a substantially smooth,single plane top surface, and a slide having longitudinal guiding shoulders and a part extending'through the outer cap member and arranged between the :raisedcentral part of the under cap member and the outer cap memher, said slide and outer cap member having openings adapted to be brought into registration, a spring normally pressing said slide to move said openings out of registration, the part of said slide extending through the outer cap member being adapted for engagement to move the slide against the action of the spring to bring the openings in the slide into registration with the openings in the outer cap member.

8. A sitter top can, comprising outer and under cap members having openings therethrough, a slide arranged between said cap 15 members for opening and closing said openings, said inner cap member and slide having interengaging parts for guiding the slide, the

engagement between the slide and the under cap member permitting accurate slide action independently of the circumferential position of the slide with respect to the inner cap member.

9. A sifter top for containers, comprising an under cap member secured to the upper edge of the container body and having an outlet opening therein, an over cap member having sitter openings therein, and a slide disposed between said cap members for opening and closing said openings, said slide having 33 an extended operating part and being movable transversely between said cap members, irrespective of the circumferential position of said operating parts with respect to the under cap member. 21;; STANLEY H. LINDGREN. 

